Balenciaga Faults Someone Else For ‘Child Abuse’ Campaign, Sues Them For $25M
By Mikelle Leow, 29 Nov 2022
Balenciaga might be notorious for its ability to appall, but it pushed over the threshold with scandalous advertising campaigns that have been accused of trivializing child abuse.
The Spanish fashion house had social media chattering—and not in a good way—after eagle-eyed users spotted paperwork from the Supreme Court’s 2008 ruling for United States v. William about sexually-explicit imagery of children. The document added to the backdrop of a photo showing a Balenciaga x Adidas calfskin bag.
the brand "Balenciaga" just did a uh..... interesting... photoshoot for their new products recently which included a very purposely poorly hidden court document about 'virtual child porn'
— shoe (@shoe0nhead) November 21, 2022
normal stuff pic.twitter.com/zjMN5WhZ0s
After a whirlwind of a week, Balenciaga is suing the production company behind the photo, North Six, and its set designer Nicholas Des Jardins for adding the document to the shoot “without [its] knowledge or authorization.” The company is seeking at least US$25 million in damages.
In its complaint, Balenciaga condemned North Six’s creation process for the photo shoot as “inexplicable,” and “malevolent or, at the very least, extraordinarily reckless.”
Balenciaga added that North Six’s “misconduct” has led consumers and the members of the press to “falsely and horrifically [associate]” its name with “the repulsive and deeply disturbing subject of the court decision,” as quoted from the lawsuit by Bloomberg.
Separately, the label also stressed that the production company had “confirmed in writing that these props were fake office documents,” but it was later found that the they were “real legal papers most likely coming from the filming of a television drama.”
The handbag photo was only one-half of the reason for the public’s outrage with the brand. Other offending photos that have been brought to light by shoppers include imagery of innocent children carrying teddy bear bags that were dressed in “bondage” gear.
Balenciaga using photos of little girls playing with teddy bears dressed in bondage gear on their website. Lovely. pic.twitter.com/mYnt0CJuif
— Slarty Bartfast (@DatCatDer) November 20, 2022
Balenciaga took down the controversial photos and issued an apology on Monday.
“We strongly condemn child abuse. It was never our intent to include it in our narrative,” the brand emphasized.
Balenciaga said the scandalous images were from two separate advertisements—one of them a holiday shopping campaign and the other to promote its Spring 2023 collection—which it now acknowledged “reflect a series of grievous errors for which Balenciaga takes responsibility.”
Internal and external investigations are underway, said the brand. Balenciaga elaborated that it is in the process of restructuring its creative processes and is working with organizations focused on child protection to ensure it doesn’t commit the same mistakes again.
As for the photos of young children with BDSM-inspired plush toys, Balenciaga said it would take full responsibility for its “failure in assessing and validating [the] images.”
Those images were captured by photographer Gabriele Galimberti, whose most recognized series, Toy Stories, shows children posing in their bedrooms with their favorite things.
Hey Photographers :
— Hoop (@xhoop) November 21, 2022
When Balenciaga hires you to shoot their new lookbook & you show up to find a toddler laid across a sofa with wine glasses & bondage gear arranged around them, you walk away. Period. pic.twitter.com/DSoHgQLM6O
The photographer asserted in a statement that he had no involvement in the direction of the campaign.
“I am not in a position to comment [on] Balenciaga’s choices, but I must stress that I was not entitled in whatsoever manner to neither [choose] the products, nor the models, nor the combination of the same,” Galimberti wrote on Instagram.
“As usual for a commercial shooting, the direction of the campaign and the choice of the objects displayed are not in the hands of the photographer,” he furthered. Galimberti said he was only in charge of taking the pictures in his “signature style.”
As per the Daily Mail (via PetaPixel), Balenciaga has confirmed that it will not take legal action against the photographer.
It’s remarkable how the photos had gone through numerous rounds of approval without anyone batting an eyelid, only for them to be hastily removed in a moment of regret. There were so many times someone—be it a photographer, project manager, or social media executive—could have said no. Yet, the images managed to slip through the cracks.
Balenciaga’s hangover will likely drag on into the holiday season, the time of the year it should be reaping its most earnings.
Among the stunts’ most famous critics is Kim Kardashian, who says she is now “re-evaluating” her role as an ambassador for the company.
As a mother of four, I have been shaken by the disturbing images. The safety of children must be held with the highest regard and any attempts to normalize child abuse of any kind should have no place in our society — period.
— Kim Kardashian (@KimKardashian) November 27, 2022
As for my future with Balenciaga, I am currently re-evaluating my relationship with the brand, basing it off their willingness to accept accountability for something that should have never happened to begin with — & the actions I am expecting to see them take to protect children.
— Kim Kardashian (@KimKardashian) November 28, 2022